– We are in an incredibly serious situation right now. We stand out. There is no other European country where children as young as ten are recruited directly into criminal networks, so this is about protecting children, says the minister in the interview.
The serious crime means that in the short term it may be necessary to take more children and young people into compulsory custody, says Camilla Waltersson Grönvall
– In the long term, the goal is for fewer people to be taken into care, but in the situation we are in right now, we need to save children from criminal networks. We need to set limits and ensure that these children and young people do not get hurt, and then LVU and care can be such a measure, she says.
Laws with special provisions on the care of young people, often abbreviated LVU, make it possible to forcibly take care of young people who are in harm’s way.
Family homes before institutions
In 2020, 3,500 children and young people were taken into care and placed in accommodation such as SIS homes and HVB homes, but the quality of municipal HV accommodation is in question.
According to Camilla Waltersson Grönvall, the goal is that more children and young people should be cared for in family homes instead of in institutions, and that the government should invest more in preventive efforts when the children are young.
The police chief on how the gangs recruit children in the clip below.